ANALYZING

CONTROVERSIAL
CURRENT EVENTS

Mrs. Oualline
and Coach
Svien

ASSIGNMENT PART A
Rhetorical Analysis
What is the basic subject of the column ?
W h a t i n f o r m a t i o n / f a c t s d o e s t h e w r i te r g i v e ? L i s t t h e m a i n p o i n t s ( t h e s e m ay b e
bulleted).
I n yo u r o w n wo r d s a n d i n a s i n g l e s e n te n c e , s t a te t h e w r i te r s o p i n i o n a b o u t t h e s u b j e c t .
D o e s t h e w r i te r s t a te h i s / h e r o p i n i o n d i r e c t l y ? I f s o , w r i te o u t t h e s e n te n c e ( s ) t h a t s t a te
t h e o p i n i o n . I f t h e o p i n i o n i s n ot d i r e c t l y s t a te d , e x p l a i n h ow yo u k n o w t h e o p i n i o n .
W h a t te c h n i q u e s / d e v i c e s / s t r a t e g i e s d o e s t h e w r i te r u s e to s u p p o r t t h e o p i n i o n ? G i v e
q u o te s f r o m t h e a r t i c l e .
Figurative Language? (simile, metaphor, personification, etc.)
Rhetorical Appeals? (Ethos, Pathos, Logos)
Rhetorical Strategies? (like sarcasm, anaphora, hyperbole, antithesis, rhetorical questions,
etc.)
Logical Fallacies? (ad hominem, bandwagon appeal, circular argument, etc .)
W h a t d o yo u l e a r n a b o u t t h e c o l u m n i s t f r o m t h i s a r t i c l e ?
Fo r w h a t t y p e o f r e a d e r wa s t h e a r t i c l e w r i t te n ?
D o e s t h e w r i te r o f fe r e n o u g h e v i d e n c e to c o nv i n c e yo u to a g r e e w i t h h i m / h e r ? W hy o r
w hy n ot ?
I n c l u d e t h e b i b l i o g r a p h i c i n fo r m a t i o n fo r t h e a r t i c l e , fo l l ow i n g t h e c o r r e c t M L A f o r m a t .
I n c l u d e t h e fo l l ow i n g i n fo r m a t i o n : a u t h o r, t i t l e o f t h e a r t i c l e , t i t l e o f t h e p e r i o d i c a l
( u n d e r l i n e d ) , d a te , a n d p a g e n u m b e r ( s ) o f t h e a r t i c l e . I f i t i s f r o m a n e w s p a p e r, a l s o
w r i te t h e s e c t i o n o f t h e p a p e r w i t h t h e p a g e n u m b e r. S e e t h e s a m p l e b e l o w.

ASSIGNMENT PART B
Per suasive Essay

Write a PERSUASIVE ESSAY (500 -700

words) in which you either agree or
disagree with the issue discussed in your
article.
This response should be PERSUASIVE in
style and, therefore, should employ the
ef fective use of various rhetorical
strategies.
You should not merely state your opinion
the purpose of a persuasive paper is to
PERSUADE (I know, its a novel concept ).
You should also take great care to avoid
logical fallacies.
Finally, tr y to emulate the style of the
writer you are studying ; imitating
professional writers will make you a
better writer.

PERSUASIVE ESSAY
On the
On each

On each

On the

, write down your thesis statement .

paper, write down a separate topic sentence
that proves your thesis is true.
paper, write down a separate specific
example that supports your topic
sentence. If possible, use both a
personal and historical example.

paper, write a counter-argument,

rebuttal, and call to action that makes
sense for your essay.

THESIS STATEMENT AND TOPIC

SENTENCE
Thesis
A thesis is the most
important sentence in an
essay, because it tells the
reader exactly what the
essay is about.
In a persuasive essay, it tells
the reader which side of the
argument the writer has
taken.
It should be specific.
It should be a singlesentence paragraph located
at the beginning of the
essay.

Topic Sentence
A topic sentence is a
sentence that sums up the
main point of the entire
paragraph in which it is
contained.

SPECIFIC EXAMPLES
In order to prove that each reason (topic sentence) is true, you should
provide a specific example to illustrate your point.
Per sonal and historical examples are the most ef fective type of
example you can provide.
Per sonal examples
You must be specific! Dont just refer to some people or write hypothetical
examples like if you
These examples will likely take the shape of a short story with specific names
and actions. The more detailed you can be and the more you tie your example
into your reason/topic sentence, then the more persuasive your argument will be.

Historical examples
Think of well-known historical events that have occurred that might relate to your
prompt and argument.
Examples:
World War II
Civil Rights Movement
The American Revolution

COUNTER-ARGUMENT, REBUTTAL, CALL

TO ACTION
The most effective persuasive essays will acknowledge opposing
points of view.
Acknowledging the other sides argument can be accomplished
through the counter-argument.
The counter-argument, rebuttal, and call to action is a 3 step
concluding paragraph that will effectively close your persuasive
essay.
Counter-argument
Acknowledges a legitimate reason that the other side provides as a reason
why they are right. (You can look back at your brainstorming to remember
what possible arguments the other side might provide.)

Rebuttal
Specifically addresses the counter-argument and explains why your point is
better.

Call to action
Encouragement to the reader to feel/think/believe/do something different
now that he or she has read your essay.